Hearthome Magic Academey
by TheRoseRedReaper
Summary: A school filled with magic, mischief, and wonder, all love and esteem Hearthome Academy. Throw in an unlikely duo, an unexpected villain, tons of adventure, and badly timed romance, and you're in for one heck of a school year! Rated T just to be safe.(Discontinued.)
1. Summer: July and August

**(A/U): Hey! Thanks for checking out my new story! I plan for it to be pretty long, and full of wacky adventure. This story will be divided into the different seasons. Hopefully I can complete this story before the summer ends. Also, ikarishipping in this story will be mentioned, but I don't plan for it to play a big roll. Without further ado, on to the story!**

 **Special thanks to: my beta reader. You're awesome.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, Starbucks, or frappucinos.**

* * *

 **Summer: July**

* * *

The season of warmth, joy, and to many, freedom. The days are long, sunshine is abundant. Breezes cause emerald leaves to dance while wild flowers in meadows wave to passerby. Dawn Berlitz loves the summer season, but Paul Shinji despises it. Yet, on one particularly bright summer day, in the sticky summer heat, the two teens happened to cross paths. The impressions they made on one another was anything but spectacular.

* * *

Paul was cross with his elder brother. Today, he had planned to do nothing but stay inside, as he had been doing for the past whole month of summer vacation. Just himself, the internet, and a silent hotel room. Yet his elder brother decided that today, he wanted an iced caramel frappucino from Starley Bucks, with extra whip cream and caramel. Reggie decided that Paul had to get it for him because he's older and just because he said so. The moody teen would have ignored his sibling just fine if Reggie had not threatened to turn off the Wi-Fi for their hotel room. So on his merry way to Starley Bucks he went, dressed in black with a scowl that kept any other teen back.

* * *

Dawn was delighted with her mother. Today, she expected to be bored, do nothing but stay inside. All of her close friends had, after all, left town for vacation, and she couldn't message any of her overseas friends because of the difference in time zones. Sensing her daughter's misery, Joanna Berlitz offered to head to the next town over so the two could get some iced drinks from Starley Bucks. So it was that Dawn and her mom borrowed a scooter from a neighbor and went over to Sandgem Town.

* * *

The ordering of sugary drinks went well enough, but when Paul opened the door to leave the establishment that was crawling with hipsters, an overexcited mop of blue hair belonging to a scrawny teen plowed right into him. From Joanna's point of view, it all seemed to happen in slow motion: the frappucino flying into the air, Paul falling back and landing the cold tiled floor, and Dawn tripping and sprawling on top of him. The frappucino then ceremoniously cascaded onto both teens. They were laughed at for the most part by the hipsters at the cafe.

"I-I'm so sorry! A-are you alright..?"

"Do I _look_ like I'm alright? You drenched me in sugary coffee and wasted my eight dollars!" Paul refrained from cursing, having noticed Dawn's mother behind her.

"I said I was sorry!"

"Sorry isn't going to give me my money back or magically clean my clothes, you troublesome girl." Paul spat, getting up, some of the frappucino slopping down from his jacket onto the floor. Dawn also stood, the bit of the frappucino that splashed onto her sliding icily through her hair.

"You don't have to be so mean about it, I'll even pay for another cup for you-"she was ignored, the lavender haired teen already walking away with the gritty remains of the frappucino. "Hey, I'm stilling talking!" Paul waved her off as he headed out into the sticky summer heat, not wanting to deal with any more human interaction.

"So rude!"

"So troublesome."

* * *

 **Summer: August**

* * *

With a variety of chatot, pidgey, and starley flying overhead the bustling crowds of students, the school year began. Most children on this day are heavy hearted on this first day of school, for their blissful freedom had ended, but for the students of Hearthome Magic Academy, there was nothing but excitement. The senior high school and university, available from tenth grade until a student could obtain their doctorate's degree, was and is famous worldwide as the most prestigious magic academy in the world. The majority of students for this school are selected from a long list of those with magical potential by the staff and teachers to attend. Everyone prided in their own talent. During this fateful summer, the lives of Paul Shinji and Dawn Berlitz crossed, and would be forever intertwined henceforth, as they embark as an unlikely duo upon adventures in this magic academy.

* * *

 **Please tell me what you all think, I would really appreciate some feed back.**


	2. Summer: August and September

**(A/N): In this story, I plan to incorporate characters from the mangaverse as well as from the anime into this work. Also, some parts of this chapter was inspired by the Harry Potter books. This is a whopping five pages for the big amount of time between now and when I uploaded the first chapter. Sorry! Without further ado, please enjoy the chapter.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, star bucks, Harry Potter, or anything else that is copyrighted. All things belong to their rightful owners.**

* * *

 **(Dawn)**

The entire school building itself seemed to be an enchantment. Upon entering the large double doorway, Dawn was met with lavish royal purple and Prussian blue tapestries bearing the school emblem in golden thread hanging from the ceiling, stained glass windows depicting beautiful images of Sinnoh mythology, and a plush black carpet leading her down to the Main Hall. The heavy mass of adolescents and adults around her followed the carpet to the Main Hall; the older students loitered about while the new students stood in an awkward bunch. After several minutes of standing about, the doors of a large room directly to the south of the entrance opened grandiosely. The students soon found this to be the dining hall as they entered. A feast was laid out for them: dozen of dishes of diverse meat platters, bowls filled with berries and moomoo milk cream, rich soups, and decadent casseroles among other things at the enormous tables.

The new students were not allowed to sit down just yet, and were divided into high school and university groups. They were then called one by one down to the stage to be sorted into a dorm community. Dawn could not help but think of her favorite book series, Harry Potter, as this happened. They had to call her three times before she snapped out of her thoughts. Sheepish, the blue haired girl rushed up to the stage and sat on the empty chair in the center of the stage. Several students snickered at her. A heavy sigh caught Dawn's attention.

"You might as well not need sorting, as it seems you're an airhead." She was surprised to see the famed Professor Oak before her. It seems as though no one else heard him, and he centered a heavy old wand on her forehead. It was several moments before a symbol of water appeared above her head and he spoke again. He left her with a bad impression.

"Dawn Berlitz, House of Suicuine!" she was ushered off the stage and made to sit at one of the tables dressed in blue. While the proceeding of sorting students continued, Dawn whispered to an older student in front of her.

"Um, excuse me, do you know why Professor Oak is here?" he turned and looked at her with a blank face, his red eyes regarding her passively.

"He retired from researching Pokémon and decided to come teach Beast Studies when his grandson entered the school. He's alright." Some surrounding students seemed surprised that the red eyed boy had spoken. Dawn's attention was called back to the stage after spotting a familiar mop of purple hair out of the corner of her eye. It was the boy from Starley Bucks!

"Paul Shinji, House of Entei!" Dawn could not help but feel glad that she was in a separate house from him. After many students where called, the last child was finally sorted, and the head master stood to introduce herself. She stood no taller than an elementary schooler, with an afro of curly pink hair covering her blue eyes; yet, she commanded a strong air of respect.

"Welcome one, and welcome all, to Hearthome Magic Academy!" polite applause followed her simple greeting. "Before our feast, a few words I'd like to say: bravery is honest contempt best kept to oneself rather than boasted. Now, to introduce our professors!" Dawn did not pay much to the introduction of any of the teachers as something else caught her attention, yet again. A pikachu had stuck its little face out from under the shirt of the older red eyed boy. It proceeded to eat berries off of the table snuck to it by the boy until the introduction of the teachers were done.

"Is that _your_ pikachu?" Dawn whispered to the boy. He glanced at her with no concern.

"Yes. Don't tell anyone, though. Pokémon aren't allowed in the dining hall." He began his dinner, the students around them again startled by his speech. Dawn piled some pieces of fried fish onto her plate and some salad, smiling at the pikachu, who made his appearance again. Dawn fed him an oran berry, which he seemed to appreciate. The boy abruptly spoke again.

"I'm Red. First year university student."

"Nice to meet you! I'm Dawn, first year high school student." So it was with this new friend that Dawn spent the rest of dinner talking with.

* * *

To say the dorm house communities were even more eccentric than the Main Hall would be an understatement. Several rows of small, cozy cottages painted accordingly to the legendary Pokémon they represented constituted the primary living spaces of the students. Neat gravel rows were the walkways between cottages, and it all led to a grand pavilion overflowing with wild flowers – the students place to freely hang out.

Dawn found herself wondering how large the school's budget is as she followed the numbers on her student schedule to her own cottage. Professor Oak told her and the other first years that they were to share their small cottage with seven other students. Dawn felt as though it would be similar to having a sleep over every day with new friends. Looking up, she found her cottage easily enough, painted a delicate blue and numbered '335'. She entered the house, finding the delicate wooden door already unlocked.

"Anybody here…?"

She looked around, hearing the sounds of voices nearby, but no one in sight. She was pleasantly surprised to find her bright pink luggage neatly stacked in the living area of the small cottage, next to some other luggage. She had forgotten about her things in the excitement of her first day at her dream school.

"I wonder if I have to pick my own room or not…"

Wandering into the hallway, she found four rooms, two on each side of the hallway. Peeking into the one on the right side of the hallway, she found it empty of any other students. The room was simple enough, painted a warm gray, and contained four dark brown dressers, as well as two modest bunk beds. The bunk beds were already made up with white sheets, dark blue pillows, and blankets in a blue polka dot pattern. Dawn decided that they really liked mascots here at this school.

Continuing her exploration, she found the second room on the right side of the hall was an abnormally spacious bathroom, already filled with toiletries for feminine care. She glanced at the left side of the hall and peeked into the second bedroom. The instant she opened the door, loud shouting was released from within the sound proof room.

"Get that pikachu off of my things! He's getting them all dirty!"

"Pika isn't doing anything. He's just happy to see you, Green."

"He's tracking dirt on my sheets!"

"It's only berry juice." The male who exclaimed first groaned, and Dawn recognized the other boy as Red.

"Berry juice _stains_ , Red!"

"Well, I'm not complaining about your evee."

"My precious baby isn't doing anything wrong!"

"Neither is Pika."

Dawn cleared her throat, a bit amused. She startled the one Red called Green, while Red just glanced up passively, holding his pikachu. Awkward silence ensued. It was, surprisingly, broken by Red.

"Hi Dawn. This is Green, Professor Oak's grandson."

The two awkwardly waved to each other, then Dawn questioned in confusion, "I thought Gary Oak was Professor Oak's grandson?"

"He's Green's cousin."

"Oh."

Awkward silence. Again.

"So, I'm guessing we're all roommates, or rather, cottage mates, now?"

Green nodded in agreement, his evee walking over and rubbing herself against Dawn's leg affectionately.

"Yeah, I suppose so. Hey, how about me and Red show you around before we meet the rest of our roommates?" Red looked as though he just wanted to stay in the room with his pikachu, but Dawn enthusiastically agreed to Green's proposal, and the three of them set out from their petite cottage.

* * *

 **(Paul)**

Paul, despite his cold glares and brooding disposition, was very pleased to be at this school. He'd work very hard to enter, and was rather happy to actually be in his dream school. He did not pay attention to the fancy proceedings when he entered the dining hall, only giving attention to the school officials when he was sorted into his own house, and when he recognized that girl from Starley Bucks. She held up the line and had to be called up several times. How bothersome.

He sat at his specified table, where most of the members were loud, boisterous, and obnoxious. How troublesome. Paul noted that the students seemed to be separated into houses based on their personal attributes of wisdom and courage and what not; he heard the House of Suicuine, the House of Entei, the House of Raikou, and the House of Celebi. He wondered why the houses were represented by mythical Pokémon of Johto, rather than Sinnoh. He didn't pay it much mind though, too focused on his rich oddish soup.

Paul then found himself searching for his cottage. He found it quite annoying to have to share it with seven other students, but he can't complain about free food and board. He soon found the cottage, painted a dull orange and numbered '445'. He already didn't want to enter from all the shouting coming from within. Taking a deep sigh, he slowly opened the door, wincing at the loud yelling.

A girl whose hair was wrapped in a red bandana was arguing fiercely with a similar looking girl whose hair was wrapped in a blue bandana. He chose to slink past them, inferring from their intense conversation that the two were siblings, and that the one in the red bandana is named May, while the one in the blue bandana is named Sapphire. He walked into the hallway, and found the boy's bedroom on the left side. It was unnecessarily elaborate, in his opinion. The walls were painted a shade of rich brown and were decorated with intricate paintings of Pokémon, the bunk beds dressed in lavish red blankets, and the dressers were made of beautiful lacquered wood. He unpacked his things, staying silent as two new boys walked in. They didn't notice Paul until well into their own conversation.

"Woah, man! You scared the shit out of me!" Paul hummed in acknowledgement, recognizing the one who shouted out as the better known grandson of Professor Oak, Gary Oak. He recognized the shorter boy next to him as Ash Ketchum, the boy who tripped on stage during the sorting ceremony.

"…so, you're Paul, right? Saw you during the sorting ceremony." Paul sighed as Ash's pikachu explored the room, nosing it's way into Paul's things. The two expected him to respond, so he did. How tiresome.

"Yeah. That's me." Gary grinned, extending his hand out kindly.

"Let's be friends!" Ash nodded in agreement, smiling toothily himself. Paul saw no harm in at least making allies amongst fellow students.

"Yeah. Sure." The three of them spent the rest of the evening exploring the school, much to Paul's chagrin, avoiding the siblings in the living room as they left the cottage.

* * *

 **(Neutral POV)**

Before anyone realized it, a week had passed, and now classes had begun. Dawn relished her breakfast in the dining hall as best as she could, slathering her buttery biscuit in pecha jam and downing as much moomoo milk as she could humanly consume, already nervous for her first class. Red and Green had looked over her schedule and they both solemnly confirmed that her Magical Spells and Charms teacher, Professor Volkner, is a demon. Paul, on the other side of the dining hall, was much less concerned over having Volkner for his professor for his first class. He leisurely ate his humble meal of oats and bacon while Ash hate half the table and Gary was too nervous to eat anything. It seemed all first years had to have Volkner as their professor, be it for their first class, or for their second class.

Sadly, breakfast ended quickly and many first years found themselves trudging towards the dark hallway of the school building housing the dreary room that is Professor Volkner's classroom. They trudged in one by one, taking their seats, no one daring to sit close to him. Dawn found herself sitting next to Paul, but she paid him no mind, she was focused on Volkner; he reminded her of Red with his passive expression and lack of speech. She then found herself no longer intimidated by him, but the other students mistook his passive and expressionless face as a cold glare. The silence was tense until he spoke after the last student was situated.

"Books out and turned to page three hundred thirty five. Read the passage on wandless magic. Then turn to page four hundred forty five and read the passage on the 'magic bestowed upon us by mew'. A detailed three page report is to be on my desk by Wednesday on this subject. Begin." His voice was monotone and blank, and he did not glance at them, seeming to be occupied himself with his own reading. The students quickly complied.

* * *

The second class soon came, and Dawn and Paul found themselves together again, this time in herbology. This time they were again paired together at a desk by the kind professor, Professor Erika. She droned on in her airy yet sophisticated voice her introduction of her class. Dawn gave a polite wave to Paul, an attempt at being friendly, but he ignored her. Lunch soon came and passed, and then Dawn found herself in yet another class with Paul. They were learning how to use broomsticks, which all of them found amusing, as this was something they only saw old ladies do. The professor showed up late, and did not seem to be any famous gym leader that the adolescents recognized.

"Hello all! I'm your coach, Joey!" the man spent the whole of the hour boasting about the awesomeness of shorts and teaching them about being wise in what clothing they wear rather than actually teach them about how to use the broomsticks in front of them. When the hour abruptly rang, signaling the end of lessons, the students quickly dispersed, having heard enough of shorts to last them a life time.

Some students headed out to the Main Hall to hang out in the various libraries and common rooms located throughout the school, while others headed back to the cottage houses. Dawn followed after Paul on his way to his cottage, not happy about his anti-social tendencies in every class they had together.

"Hey!" He hurried his pace in hopes that he would discourage her pursuit, but she merely matched his pace, grabbing his wrist.

"I _said_ 'hey'!"

He glanced away, shrugging her hand off. "Tch."

"What is your problem? I just want to be friends! We started off on the wrong foot too, when we bumped into each other that one time at Starley Bucks. Why not start over? I'm Dawn." She extended her arm in a hand shake. Paul suppressed a heavy sigh, things like this were always troublesome; yet he found himself accepting her handshake and replying in turn,

"Paul."

* * *

 **I hope you all enjoyed the reading the chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it! Please tell me what you think of this story so far and if you like it, I would appreciate it very much. Also, in case you were wondering why they had so little classes, the schedule is to have only only three classes a day, and on Wednesdays the students have all six classes in short blocks. This set up of the classes gives students plenty of time for independent study and their own down time.**


	3. Summer: September

**(A/N): Here's another chapter for you all. It's slowly progressing, but the plot starts rolling here. Some important things are mentioned throughout the chapter that will important later in the story. Also, when I mention characters from the mangaverse, yes, that does mean manga. The pokemon adventures manga, to be more specific. It's a great read if you haven't looked at it. I don't intend to include too many characters from the games, but in response to the guest who posted their review, Leaf is not actually a character from the mangaverse. That's just the name given to the female heroine of the Fire Red and Leaf Green games. Anywho, yes, she will be mentioned throughout the story. Anyways, enjoy the chapter.**

 _ **DISCLAIMER: All copyrights belong to their respective owners.**_

* * *

Dawn's day began with a start. Green's evee and Red's pikachu ran into the girl's bedroom, stirring up a ruckus at some Arceus forsaken hour. This resulted in four very unhappy girls barging into the boy's room and throwing four half-asleep boys out of bed. This left the eight cottage mates (Red could honestly care less, though) on a tired edge; they arrived at the dining hall much too early with bags under their eyes. Red himself looked wide awake, though. Breakfast, at least, revived their spirits some. Red silently handed Dawn a steaming mug he pulled from who-knows-where, motioning for her to drink it. She eyed it dubiously.

"It's spiced moomoo milk. Stir in some honey. It'll wake you up."

The quiet boy resumed nibbling his toast while Green pestered him about what he gave Dawn. Skeptical, Dawn stirred in a spoonful of honey as she was told, and took a tentative sip. She was pleasantly surprised by the comforting drink.

"Thanks."

He gave her a thumbs up with a rare smile while Green gave Dawn a scalding look from behind Red, bits of oatmeal clinging to his cheek. He looked jealous, but Dawn was too busy downing the rest of her warm drink to give it any attention. Dawn supposed today wouldn't be too bad after all.

* * *

Paul's morning was much more boring. He awoke with his alarm, showered, dressed, and seated himself at the dining hall well before his other cottage mates. Despite the teachers reassuring him the supply of food at the tables are magically never ending, he refused to take any chances with the combined appetites of Ash, May, and Sapphire. When Gary and Ash arrived at the house table, they complained that Paul should stop leaving them behind. Paul chose to ignore their complaints and continued eating his pancakes. Today they would meet the teachers of their second set of classes. Volkner had struck Paul as a malicious guy, he regarded Erika as a pompous airhead, and Joey was downright annoying.

"Pauuuuuul! Yo, Earth to Paul!"

Startled from his thoughts, he quickly looked up to see half of the dining hall deserted. He noted that his plate was mysteriously devoid of pancakes.

"The bell rang, man. Let's get to class before we're late. My gramps doesn't like to be kept waiting."

Paul quickly followed Gary to the West Wing of the Main Hall, Ash already far ahead of them.

* * *

The classroom for Beast Studies was a mess, filled with frayed books, old fossils, some remains of poor creatures pickled in jars, as well as some other odd bits and ends. The room barely let in any light beyond the ancient dust choked windows, casting the room into gloomy shadow. Paul quickly decided the room pleasant. Dawn found it creepy and painfully disorganized. The two teens, were once again, assigned seats next to one another, though they had to share it with two other students. This vaguely reminded Paul of how the desks were in his middle school classes a year ago. Dawn already made conversation with the red head sitting next to her, making the discovery that this girl is one of her many pen pals online: Misty Waterflower. Paul decided to observe the other students before the teacher arrived. He recognized some kids from his own House, and others were not familiar.

He wondered if any of them belonged to the House of Celebi, the only House that held a few elite amount of students. Professor Oak suddenly rushed into the class, ten minutes late. It was another ten minutes before he could catch his breath and actually begin speaking.

"Hello all! I am so sorry for being late, those stairs are a handful!"

Awkward silence hung over the students.

"Anywho, I am your Beast Studies teacher, Professor Samuel Oak! It's quite a pleasure to meet you all," he shuffled over to behind his desk, searching for a piece of chalk.

"In this class, not only will you be studying Pokémon, you'll be studying the different magical breeds and hybrids that live hidden away from eyes. Now, while our modern society is familiar with magic, the average citizen is mediocre at this craft, at best. As a result, we have become blind to seeing the special beasts over the past few generations."

He held up the piece of chalk triumphantly, and began writing on the black board, though most of the words were blocked from view by the large mounds of papers nested on his desk.

"The first half of this class will be learning to 'open our eyes'. If we can manage to get past that stage, then we'll move onto minor magical beings and the hybrids. You'll learn more in detail about these magical creatures and hybrid Pokémon in future school years."

The rest of the class was spent with everyone introducing themselves to one another. Misty Waterflower, Drew Hayden, and Leafe Greene were among the names Paul chose to remember. Dawn tried to remember everyone's names to become friends with them in the future.

* * *

The following class had all students present on edge. The teacher preferred to shout all his words, and worked through his lessons as though each subject he taught was a priceless work of art. Lt. Sierge spoke passionately, with vivacity, and an eagerness that commanded attention. He launched into the first lesson right away, leaving all his students strangely energetic and excited to share what they had learned by the end of the lesson. Even Paul was affected.

To Paul's slight surprise, though, he did not share his history class with Dawn. It was only the second day of classes and he was already accustomed to the sight of having the perky blue haired girl at his elbow everywhere he went. He supposed she chose a different history class to take, as there was, after all, three different courses to choose from. Speaking of Dawn – the girl was waving to him from the other side of the dining hall. With holding a sigh, he trudged over to her house table.

"Paul! How was your history class?"  
He gave her a bored look. The bored look was met with silent malice from Red and Green, who sat next to Dawn.

"It was…interesting, to say the least."

"You're taking 'A History of Magic', right? I wanted to get into that class, but it was all full! You're so lucky! I got stuck with Pokémon Mythology. It's soooo boring."

"Dawn, is there a point to this conversation?"

Dawn gave him a sour look.

"Is there something wrong with wanting to talk with a friend?"

"There is if it's taking my lunchtime away. Which it is."

She gave him a frustrated pout; it'd be understandable to not want to talk with someone if they're taking time away from your lunch hour, but he could have said it in a nicer way. Paul hid a chuckle at her expression.

"We can talk after classes, if you want. Troublesome."

Why he had to add her 'nickname' of sorts at the end, Dawn did not know, but Paul was already walking back to his house table. Red smothered Dawn with sweets as soon as Paul left while Green bristled with jealously again.

"Yo, Paul! Who was that cutie you were talking to from Suicuine House? I'd like to get her digits."

Ash added commentary around a mouthful of food, "She looks nice. Maybe we can all be friends with her."

Paul gave Gary a scowl, not paying attention to Ash.

"Her name is Dawn. She's rather troublesome, you shouldn't bother with her."

Gary looked Paul over with a serious expression before breaking the silence with sarcasm.

"My, what a day this is! The great Paul speaks with us peasants!"

Ash and Paul did not appreciate his sarcasm. Not one bit. They demonstrated this by flinging spoonfuls of food at his face.

* * *

The final class of the day: Defense against the Dark Arts. Dawn was reminded of Harry Potter once again, but she supposed the class may be helpful in the future. She took her assigned seat in between Gary and Ash; Paul was sitting towards the front of the room. The children were abuzz with gossip, wondering who their teacher would be. The teacher them self was not represent during the sorting ceremony or staff introductions. The door suddenly burst open with a flare, shrill singing following it.

A lone drifblim entered the room, continuing its song and throwing flower petals about. Everyone stared, dumbfounded. When it reached the teacher's desk, the drifblim suddenly disappeared in a brilliant flash and explosion of flower petals. All students had to shield their eyes, and when they could see safely again, a woman in a magnificent purple gown stood posing on the teacher's desk, grinning as though she had pulled off the most amazing performance of the century. She stayed posing for several long moments before she looked down at her class.

"No applause? No astounded wonder?" her French accent was positively atrocious. Awkward clapping followed her questions. Her lips pursed into a pout, and she graciously stepped down from the desk with the help of a drifloon.

"I am your Defense against the Dark Arts teacher, Fantina. Some of you may know me, yes?" she was met with a few nods. Her pout turned into a subtle scowl.

"In this class, you shall learn all about the Dark Arts and such, and how some Pokémon are connected to it. You all will learn simple defenses too, as well as how to duel. You are not allowed to use any of the spells I teach outside of class, however, unless absolutely necessary." She snapped her fingers, textbooks appearing in front of each student with a small puff of smoke. "We begin with counter spells."

Dawn vaguely wondered why Fantina acted so different from when she saw the great Fantina years ago on television as a child. She supposed it had to do with old age and converting to teaching, which was a simple life style compared to being a gym leader and top coordinator. The class dragged on as Fantina droned on about shields, counter spells, and jinxes.

* * *

Dawn found herself in the throes of a dream. A sea of golden grain surrounded her, and a pink sky dotted with purple clouds loomed overhead. She stared in wonder at the area around her, an abrupt desire to run with all her might enveloping her. So she did. She ran through the fields of wheat, feeling the soft soil underneath her feet, the silken stalks of tall plants against her fingertips, and the wind flowing like gentle loving caresses against her and her white robes.

She smelled sweet budding wild flowers nearby, the aroma of just departed rain, and the gentle scent of creatures enjoying the scenery around them. She found herself galloping gracefully on the quiet breeze, laughing out in the silence with unparalled joy. It was so serene, so peaceful here. Dawn came to a sudden halt as a flock of sky shaymin flew leisurely past her. She stared in amazement and took another look at the land below her; long gone was the ocean of grain. She was now in a haven of rolling emerald pastures dotted with red tulips.

Dawn spotted a lake out of the corner of her eye, and her breath was taken away. It was the most beautiful body of water she had ever seen. It was carefully framed with proud pine trees and mute foliage, the view itself a priceless work of art. Dawn found herself walking towards the lake on the breeze, inexplicably drawn to the magic waters. The blue haired teen halted just steps away from the edge of the lake, startled by the appearance of a xerneas taking a drink. It slowly lifted its head and they stared levelly at one another, midnight blue eyes entranced by ruby red eyes.

Its eyes seemed to twinkle at her, as though it knew her and wanted to speak with her. Dawn's breath hitched as she realized that (as much as she had read from textbooks) a xerneas's eyes are gray or blue, not red. Her amazement was reborn, and she marked the legendary before her as special.

"…ome…" the elegant life Pokémon bolted off into the forest at the echoing sound, leaving Dawn with a heavy heart.

"Tr…..ome…" the sky shook and the earth heaved around her, leaving Dawn panicked as she frantically searched for the source of the sound.

"Troublesome!"

Dawn bolted upright with a sharp gasp, taking in everything around her with wide, disoriented eyes. She was sitting on the floor of the Main Hall, in the door way of the corridor leading to the student cottages.

"Troublesome, are you okay?"

"H-huh?" she looked up at Paul, frazzled. He seemed very concerned. Many other concerned students and staff were crowded around them.

"I asked if you were okay. You suddenly collapsed while we were walking," he repeated, kneeling beside her. Dawn didn't even remember leaving the classroom. Paul frowned at her puzzled expression.

"Dawn, what's two plus two?"

"F-four?"

"Six plus seven?"

"Fourteen!"

"How about five plus eight?"

"Thirteen."

Paul sighed, ruffling her hair in relief. He briefly wondered why he was so concerned over someone he knew so little about, but quickly dismissed the thought.

"Good. You're fine," he helped her up, the crowd asking Dawn a few things before dispersing.

"Do you even remember fainting?"

"N-No…," a pause, "…I only remember having a dream. It…it was a nice dream." Paul shook his head, and the two continued walking, Paul keeping a hand on her elbow in the case she should faint again.

"We should take you to the infirmary," Dawn didn't think that necessary, so she just responded, "I'll go tomorrow." Comfortable silence settled between them as they finished their walk to the dorm communities. The two sat together under the pavilion, Dawn watching the sun slowly dwindle down the horizon.

"Hey, Paul?"

"Yeah?"

"Why are we sitting here?"

An annoyed sigh.

"I promised that we could talk after classes."

"Oh. Right."

Silence.

"Dawn."

"Yeah?"

"What did you dream about?"

"Well…I dreamt that I was in this magical place…The sky was pink, the clouds were purple, and…," he waited for her speak again, "…there was the most beautiful lake."

Paul looked at her in surprise.

"Did you see anything at that lake…?"

"Yeah, actually. There was a xerneas there. Except…its eyes were red. Why do you ask?"

He looked at her with a frown tugging at his features.

"I had the same dream," he turned to watch the sun set, "Except, when I reached the lake…there was a mew smiling at me."

Silence again. Dawn looked up at Paul.

"Do you think it means something?"

He shrugged. "We can't be sure unless we have the dream again."

The two adolescents watched the sun depart for the day under the horizon, staying under the pavilion until well after the stars came out. They felt their bonds deepen deep down, despite still being little more than strangers to one another.

* * *

 **Reviews and constructive criticism are appreciated, so don't hesitate to tell me what you think of this story.**


	4. Summer: September, Climax

**(A/N): Here's the fourth chapter! I feel as though the first two chapters aren't very appealing, and that this story got off to slow start. What do you all think? Also, thank you to the Guest who reviewed Chapter , you made me very happy. If I did add Team Rocket, they would be like how they were in pokespe, but I do not intend to add any of the infamous villains that appeared in the manga, games, or anime. You'll see later in this story. Also, the Head Master is mentioned frequently throughout this chapter, but I am not entirely sure if she would count as an OC.**

 _ **DISCLAIMER: All things belong to their respective owners.**_

* * *

August passed by in a whirlwind, with September creeping slowly towards the beginnings of its climax. Green leaves still clung to trees, the heat remained stubbornly present, but cool breezes were at least beginning to slowly roll into the city of Hearthome. It had already been a month since school began, and things had already settled into a routine. Since talking with Paul, neither Dawn nor Paul had any dreams even remotely similar to the one they discussed during that sunset several weeks ago.

On this Saturday, lounging on the lawn with his friends just outside the Main Hall, Paul was hit with a heavy wave of déjà vu watching the head master walk past with Professor Oak. His eyes remained trained on her as she passed; her pink curls sparkled in the sun, a spring in her step present, and her cerulean eyes glinted with mischievous. The short statured woman caught Paul staring at her and grinned, holding up a finger to her lips as if to say "Shhh".

The moment quickly passed, however, as Head Master Mayella stormed off at some comment from the Professor. Paul was left utterly confused, feeling as though he should have known what Mayella was trying to tell him.

"Hey Paul, what are you staring at?" Ash asked. That snapped him out of his reverie.

"…nothing of importance."

* * *

Paul found it odd that Dawn wasn't very talkative today, and she seemed very spacey as well. Every time Red passed by, she stared after him as though he was a passing dream. It made Paul rather uncomfortable. It was as though Dawn had gotten lifeless in her nearly mute state – Paul feared that Red's ways were rubbing off on her. But as he donned his oran berry striped pajamas that evening in his crowded bathroom, he realized that Dawn had been staring at Red much like he had been staring at Head Master Mayella earlier that afternoon. _The déjà vu the both of us experienced must be important_ , Paul thought. Paul skillfully made the treacherous walk back to his shared bedroom, avoiding Ash, Gary, and the Maple Sisters. They were always rowdy just before curfew. Pulling on his soundproof headphones, Paul thought about the events of the day. He then fell into a long, vivid dream.

* * *

When his eyes opened, Paul found himself back in the familiar expanse of a certain dreamscape. Impossibly tall pine trees crowded all around, small shrubbery framed a distinct neat path, and cool shade replaced scarce sunlight. The lavender haired teen paused to take in his surroundings, listening for any signs of life. He heard what he was searching for: faint singing in the distance, calling to him. Picking his way through the foliage, he departed from the path, towards the melancholic song.

It lead him to the magic lake. There, as he expected, was Mew, finishing her song. He relished it, her voice like an angel's, telling all of heartbreak. Their eyes met when it finally ended. She smiled giddily.

"You've found me!" He frowned at her. Why state the obvious?

"Not here in the dream world, silly. In the waking world!" Paul thought on this for several long minutes. Who could this Pokémon be in the real world? Legendaries did not make appearances in the waking world. Unless…Professor Oak had mentioned once that certain Pokémon had the capability to turn human. He then looked at her with a surprised air, realizing that she was Head Master Mayella. It just seemed to fit.

"I thought legendaries were meant to be gender neutral." She giggled.

"When we manifest as humans, we get to choose our preferred gender."

"…I see. So you've manifested as a woman?"

"Yes, I have! I find women to be much nicer than men. No offense to you, though!" He gave her a look, and then continued onto his next question.

"Why would you want to take a human form, though? Aren't there disadvantages? Also, why reveal yourself to me? Aren't there dangers?"

"So many questions! Yes, there certainly are some disadvantages, but this form doesn't bother me as much as it would others. In this human form, it's much easier to keep an eye on things," she smiled at him with a knowing smile, "I have come with Mewtwo to this academy to protect a great force you humans would call a 'philosopher's stone'. It's the last one of its kind, and too dangerous to leave on the Earth. I have revealed myself to you to ask for your help." He frowned at her. Her voice and speech were annoyingly peppy.

"How would I help you?" The mew giggled.

"You'll be awakening soon to aide me." Paul paused to consider what that could mean.

"…does that mean that I'm a legendary?" Mew was thrown into a fit of laughter, making Paul's cheeks grow warm with embarrassment.

"No! No no no, dear boy, you're just a regular human!" her laughter calmed, "When a legendary decides to stay on earth for an extended period of time, they manifest into their own human form. But if the time period were a short amount of time, then they would take a host body. The Pokémon shares the body with the human as well as the conscious; the human will always have dominant control, however. As host, humans can use the special abilities of the Pokémon they are hosting. Only very strong Pokémon and strong bodied humans can do this, however."

"…I see. I am a host, then. How long would I have to help you with this stone protection? …why even choose me?"

"Entei has chosen you especially, and would have no other for his host. I am merely the messenger to tell you this. As for the stone…it would need to be protected for approximately the rest of the school year. There is a ritual in progress to transfer the stone to Girantina, but it takes at least one school year to complete. This is the last stone that needs to be transferred, but some humans have heard of its existence, and are now pursuing it."

The teen sighed, processing all this. He sincerely hoped that all this was just a weird dream and not a prophetic dream. Deep down though, he had a sinking feeling that this was all too real. Who was he to deny the legitimacy of all of this, anyways? Magic and Pokémon were already things that exist. He looked up at Mew with a decisive scowl. She grinned in exchange.

"Consider yourself awakened, Paul Shinji."

* * *

Paul spent Sunday morning in a daze, purely lost in his thoughts. The day just slipped away as he remained in his reverie. Monday quickly rolled around, and when Head Master Mayella nodded to him in the hall, he dreaded when Entei would arrive.

* * *

Dawn wriggled impatiently in her seat as she waited for Professor Oak to show up. She found it ironic that despite Gary saying his grandfather hated tardiness, the old man himself was always late to his own class. The other students were just as impatient, for today, they'd finally be able to 'see'.

"Hey, Dawn!" Dawn smiled at her friend, whom she had recently discovered was one of her online pen pals.

"Yes, May?"

"Do you think we'll be able to see faeries?" May's hands were clasped together, and her eyes were sparkling. The brunette had always been a sucker for fairy tales. Before Dawn could reply, however, Drew scoffed behind them.

"Only you would think of something so girly, June. I want to see a _real_ dragon, and not just some dragon type." May bristled instantly at the comment, like Drew expected her to.

"My name is May! And faeries aren't girly at all – they're really cool!"

"Nuh-uh."

"Yeah-huh!"

"Nuh-uh."

"Yeah-huh!"

The class was left in agony, having to listen to their loud bickering, before Professor Oak finally entered the classroom. He was balancing cups, cheese, and crackers in his arms as he wobbled over to his messy desk. Everyone suddenly sat to attention, silent excitement and anticipation in the air. They briefly wondered what the cheese and crackers were for.

"Well, class! Today is the day!" with that statement, he pulled out potions from a cabinet, passing them out to the student who made each one, "As it has been precisely three weeks since you all have brewed these potions, they are now mature enough for drinking! Be sure you drink _**only**_ half a cup of the potion, and that it looks to be a cream-like consistency, and the color is **pink**. If you have any complications, don't hesitate to tell me!" He then passed out the plastic cups, as well as a few cheese and crackers to each student.

"These potions are best eaten with a snack, to aide digestion." He motioned for the students (whose potions he verified were good for consumption, of course) to begin drinking their potion. Dawn eyed the milky liquid dubiously; it smelled less than appetizing. Glancing around the room, she saw that others were already downing their potions. Paul seemed to give her a condescending, playful look at seeing that Dawn was too scared to drink her own potion. She gave him a scowl and swallowed it all in one big gulp. She gagged and swallowed with difficulty: the potion tasted like rotten eggs and over cooked broccoli had a baby together. Dawn quickly consumed her allotted portion of cheese and crackers to get rid of the horrid taste in her mouth.

All throughout the class, Professor Oak enjoyed himself watching the different facial reactions of the students, and had not noticed that Dawn had drank more than half a cup of her potion.

* * *

Many first year students walked to lunch in a trance, stupid looks on their faces, too busy taking in the new wonders around them to shut their open mouths. They noticed things they were blind to previously, such as the gargoyles guarding the girl's bathroom, the faeries keeping the lanterns lit in the school building, and the dwarves attending to the large school garden. May was glad to have shoved into Drew's ego how cool the faeries around them are, after having spotted one just outside the dining hall. The little woman was just over five inches tall, had reptilian wings, orange scales, and a puff of red hair that was fashionably styled. She appreciated May's praises greatly while Drew just walked off to his house table.

Drew rather disliked his house table for the most part, because it was filled with pompous assholes – the House of Celebi is well known for the large number of elite students in it. The only person from his house that Drew can stand is Wally, and it was over how the two both had green hair that they became friends. As Drew chatted his way through lunch with Wally, he made the briefest moment of eye contact with the Head Master. They both nodded to each other once before returning to their own personal lives, the exchange itself only happening for a few seconds. Drew supposed he'd have to have a talk with Paul very soon.

* * *

 **How did you enjoy the chapter? Is the story moving too fast, is there something you don't understand? Was there anything you think I portrayed wrong in this story? Please, don't hesitate to tell me! Also, please leave a review and any constructive criticism you may have. I would really appreciate feedback.**


	5. Fall: October

**(A/N): Wow, it's been a while since I've updated! I'm really terribly sorry... I honestly wasn't expecting to get so much work once school started again, but I was dead wrong. Anywho, I hope my few readers haven't been too upset. This chapter is fairly long, and I'll try to put up up the next one soon. I also hope that you all have been paying attention to the small subtle hints that I have been dropping in the story, especially from the previous chapter. I think this is a good chapter, but I do think that my writing of this story could use some work (poetry is actually my strong point as well as short stories, so I'm not used to writing long stories like this, but I love it regardless). Criticism, suggestions, and constructive feedback is really appreciated! Anywho, enough rambling. Enjoy the chapter.**

 _ **STANDARD DISCLAIMERS APPLY.**_

* * *

September has come to its end, ever so slowly letting its curtains fall to a close. The students across Sinnoh were waving the summer season goodbye in their minds as it began to take its last remnants with it. Fall had finally begun to settle in the trees, in the winds, and the cloudy skies that were almost always present on every school property in Sinnoh. Students were lulled into a somber mood with the changing of seasons, leaving classes dull. This did not apply to the students of Heart Home Magic Academy, however; a certain buzz of excitement was in the air and the hearts of the students of this school.

The freshman recently earned the ability to see magical beings, there were rumors of a special autumn festival just for wizards and witches, and the school was also going to hold a cultural festival to give thanks, as was done every year since anyone could remember. In fact, there was no remaining history recorded about why such a holiday event occurred, but no one cared, and they continued to celebrate it yearly. Merrily, happily.

It seemed that only three students at Heart Home Magic Academy were in a sour mood amongst the rest of the student body: Dawn Berlitz, Drew Hayden, and Paul Shinji. Paul and Drew both waited for the arrival of Entei, who took his sweet time arriving to the human world (much to Headmaster Mayella's embarrassment), and Dawn could simply just not get any sleep. Ever since she overdosed on the potion they brewed in Professor Oak's class, she has had non-stop migraines, nightmares, and ravaging hunger. Dawn found herself lost in thought as she wondered the halls out to the front lawn. She suddenly found herself in the arms of Paul; she struggled to grasp onto what he was saying.

"H-huh?"

"Geez, Troublesome, didn't you hear what I just told you? I want to talk to you," a look of obvious annoyance painted his face. Dawn sheepishly smiled, embarrassed at not having payed attention.

"Y-yeah, sure."

The two of them walked towards the pavilion where they had talked about the dreams they both had. The blue-haired teen's thoughts wondered again, and she thought if she and Paul were really even friends or not. She supposed that they are not friends after all, for they rarely talk to one another. They're more acquaintances than anything, and she hoped that that would hopefully change soon.

"Dawn!" She bolted upright, hyperaware that she had just drifted off, her sleep deprivation getting to her. Paul scowled at her.

"Can't you listen when others are talking to you? And you wonder why I call you Troublesome."

She gave him an annoyed pout, "I'm listening now…"

With a sigh, Paul began again what he was saying.

"I've been having those dreams again. The ones with that big lake and forest," he looked at her before continuing, to make sure she wasn't dozing off again, "Just a few days ago, the dream changed. In my dreams, there's a mew, like I had told you. She's usually always just singing to me. But…when that dream changed, she talked to me and told me all about herself. You know how our teachers have told us about messages within dreams and the like?" She nodded in response, paying rapt attention.

"Well, our dreams are ways for the legendary Pokémon to communicate with us."

Dawn scoffed, "Oh, really? What makes us so important?"

Paul shrugged, "I don't know, but mew told me that we are chosen specifically by them for one reason or another. Does the Xerneas in your dream ever talk? Or do anything special?"

Dawn paused, considering this.

"No, not really. We just stare at one another. The Xerneas bolts whenever someone wakes me up. Though..."

"Though what?"

"I've actually been having nightmares lately, Paul. It's always the same thing, too: the forest and lake are cast in night, and there are shadows covering everything. Like it's choking the plants, and the light. Also…Xerneas is still there, but it looks scared, and as though it's trying to tell me something. It never gets the chance though, it seems like something is preventing him from speaking, and preventing him from moving."

Paul looked to be in deep thought, considering this.

"I think you should tell Headmaster Mayella." Dawn looked at him with surprise, confused.

"Why her?"

"Well, she's Mew." The shadow of someone nearby darted off as soon as they heard that, but neither teen noticed. Dawn laughed, in disbelief. "She's who?"

Aggravation. "I just said that she's Mew."

"Yeah, sure." He shook her head at her.

"She is! She told me, and she told me all about why legendries are in our - I mean my dreams, though I think your dream counts too - dreams. I really think you should talk to her, your nightmares might get better if you tell her."

Dawn decided that Headmaster Mayella is a loon and that Paul had lost it.

"I thought you had more common sense than to pay attention to what happens in your dreams, Paul."

He glared, scowling. "I do have commonsense. You should know better than anyone else to not disregard messages in dreams; are we not both wizards attending a school for elite magic users?"

She simply shook her head, standing. "Whatever, Paul." With that, she walked off, the rest of the day passing by in a blur.

* * *

Among other abnormalities cropping about Dawn, she noticed that Red had begun to avoid her. It was as if he was scared of her. His Pikachu acted the same way. The other thing that Dawn noticed was that Headmaster Mayella kept scowling at her in the halls whenever she would pass by, as if she were at angry about something inside Dawn. The only friends that Dawn truly had at this moment were May and Misty, but both of them are in different houses, making meal times lonely.

May has her rowdy group at the House of Entei, and Misty sat with the jocks at the House of Raikou. Dawn's only friends at the House of Suicuine were Green and Red, but both of them were avoiding her now. She could not pin down why, and it dragged her sour mood down further.

* * *

Monday morning the following week brought the beginning of October. The air was humid, muggy, and no one wanted to go out into the light drizzle that brought with it a chill outside. On this Monday, dreary as it was, Drew attempted several times to speak with Paul. Ash and Gary, along with the speed that Paul walked with in between classes, made it nearly impossible to find an opportunity to talk to Paul. It wasn't until the evening that Drew was finally able to catch Paul by himself.

"Shinji!"

"What do you want, Hayden?" He didn't even turn around.

"To talk to you," Paul sighed, thinking this a waste of his time, "Headmaster Mayella sent me."

The lavender hair teen turned around to face the grass head, his interest piqued. _If Mayella sent him, then he must know about Mew and Entei_ , Paul thought.

"What is it that you want to talk about?"

"I'm going to prepare you for when Entei arrives." Paul smirked. The idea was laughable, and that confirmed that Drew did know all about Mew and the philosopher's stone.

"What makes you so qualified?"

Drew grinned, flicking his hair. "I was the first one to be called by the legendries. I'm the host for Celebi." Paul burst into barely contained laughter. Drew was, of course, offended.

"What's so funny, Shinji?!"

A stray giggle escaped Paul's lips. "You're an onion fairy…"

Drew's cheeks flamed. "Sh-shut up!"

* * *

In the dead of night, the 'training regime' began. Drew gave Paul so many stupid exercises that it wasn't long before Paul realized that Drew was just messing with him. Paul chased the shorter boy around in the flowers near the student living area until they both collapsed in a heap. Soon, Drew started laughing; Paul couldn't help but join in. Not long after, Drew howled in pain, holding his head.

"Whoa, what's wrong?" Paul questioned, concerned. Drew winced, giving a reassuring smile.

"Celebi is scolding me, he's telling me to stop messing around." Paul laughed. "Yeah, I suppose we should really get to work before the onion fairy thrusts its rath upon us." The two adolescents laughed together, but quickly stopped when Celebi gave Drew another headache in spite.

"So, how are you going to prepare me for Entei?"

"Honestly, I have no idea. Mew told me to help you out with his arrival, but her instructions were all over the place. I guess she just wants me to be with you when he gets here. Mew and Celebi have both told me that he's really lazy, so he might be here in a week, or in a month. I don't know. Celebi is all precise with his deadlines, so he came precisely on the second Monday of August."

Paul hummed, taking that in. "Lazy people annoy me." Drew nodded in response. "Same."

"So, are there any other hosts around?"

"Well, I know there's Xerneas, but other than that, no. And before you ask, no, I don't know who Xerneas's host is. They're rather quiet. Suicuine and Raikou are supposed to be taking up hosts soon, though, because Mew requested their help. Xerneas is supposed to be helping out the host for Suicuine, but there's been problems for him."

Paul made connections within his mind in a matter of seconds.

"…Drew, has Xerneas been trying to talk to the Suicuine host in their dreams?"

Drew paused, then looked up at Paul. "Yeah, I think so. Why do you ask?"

"The host for Suicuine has been having nonstop nightmares lately. She said that Xerneas can't reach her."

Drew stood, alarmed. "We have to tell Mew immediately." Paul followed him. He had been right in telling Dawn the week before to go talk to Headmaster Mayella. He found himself angry as he followed behind Drew that Dawn didn't listen to him. _Well, I guess we still aren't friends after all_ , was Paul's final thought before he and Drew entered Headmaster Mayella's office in the dead of night.

* * *

Tuesday was found to be just as dreary as Monday. Dawn could hardly get enough to eat for breakfast, devouring half of the magically never ending buffet, before the bells for the first class of the day chimed. She unsteadily rose, heading out of the dining hall, avoiding all other students. Her head pounded.

She did not want to worry anyone, but was simultaneously worried for herself. She shouldn't have risen to Paul's taunt that day when they were drinking those potions; she should have listened to Professor Oak's instructions; she should have gone straight to the nurse at the first night of these strange symptoms. Dawn just could not have herself stand steady. The world spinned around her, her vision swam, and she seemed to be weightless. The echoes of shouts were the only things she could hear as she dwelt on the things she should have done, her consciousness slipping away.

* * *

Into the nightmare world she dove again. Endless nothingness stretched around the bluenette, yet she knew that the forest with the magic lake was most definitely nearby. Dawn waited. She supposed it had maybe been three weeks since the nightmares began. The teenage girl has grown numb to it. But now seemed different, for the red eyed Xerneas appeared before her again, free of whatever had been restricting it in previous dreams. It still looked scared, though.

"…Red...," she was only calling it by the coloring of its eyes, but it seemed to respond with hope. Its eyes lit up, and its mouth opened, but a shadow darker than the black around them enveloped them. The Xerneas fled immediately, leaving Dawn on edge, frantically examining her dreamscape surroundings. She looked tiredly up at the new arrival when she could pinpoint them. It seemed to be shrouding itself in the shadows it brought, as if to hide its identity.

"It has been hard to reach you, Dawn Berlitz." The stranger was regarded with a frown.

"Do I know you?"

"No, I suppose not. I'm not that popular, and most are afraid of me."

A pause.

"Are you a Pokémon?"

"Ah, such a bright question," that was snarky sarcasm, "Yes, I am."

A sluggish thought reached Dawn. She's dreaming, isn't she? She should have control over her own dreams, shouldn't she? Dawn willed the dream to clear up around her. This turned to truth as the shadows cleared up and the stranger revealed himself. His form is human, and his eyes are a bloody rouge that matched the scarf hanging about his neck. He wore a formal suit all in shades of black and white, a fedora to match.

"Darkrai," it was the first word that came to Dawn.

He nodded in response.

"I have been waiting to see you, Miss Berlitz."

* * *

 **So, how was the chapter? I really do hope that you all liked it! I feel like I might be rushing the story again, so I'm going to start working on the pace... Please do leave a review, it really helps with my writing to tell me what you honestly think! Have a nice day or evening, wherever you are!**


	6. Fall: October welcomes Darkrai

**(A/N): Long no time no update. This chapter is just a little short, and is more of a filler, but I hope you all enjoy it. Is anyone actually enjoying the way this story is going? Is the plot building and adventure lacking, boring? I won't be able to know unless you all leave a review, so please leave me reviews. It really is appreciated. Without further ado, the chapter.**

 _ **STANDARD DISCLAIMERS APPLY.**_

* * *

Wednesday began much like the Tuesday and Monday before it. A multitude of students were gathered just outside the dining hall, all of them too busy gossiping about the same thing to enter the dining room: Dawn Berlitz had fainted yesterday, and has been in a catatonic state since then. Gary Oak shoved his way through the mass of jabbering students, Ash following suit behind him. It was a struggle just to reach their own table. As they sat, Gary coolly surveyed his surroundings with a skilled eye while Ash contently ate his heart out. Gary locked eyes with Red, his cousin's best friend, who seemed to be silently pleading to him. Red broke the eye contact when he realized that Gary did not understand what he had been trying to convey, a troubled expression upon his face.

Gary released an aggravated sigh as he turned to face his longtime rival, not much in the mood to eat. He watched Ash eat with a mixture of disgust and fascination at how much the boy could eat.

"Hey, Ash?"

The raven haired teen snapped his head up, egg dribbling out of the side of his mouth. Gary averted his eyes.

"Yeah, Gary?"

"Don't you feel like we're being excluded?"

Ash paused in his eating, wiping his mouth with a napkin as his considered the question.

"Hum…excluded from what?"

Gary sighed, "From anything involving our friends."

Ash shrugged, "Well, it's been only about a month since we all started school. They might not even consider us friends, Gary. I don't think we're being excluded from anything."

Gary's expression soured. "Haven't you noticed weird things lately?"

"Like what?" Ash returned to eating his breakfast.

"Like how Paul and Dawn always seems to be in a daze over something the past week or two, RedRed and my cousin stopped talking to Dawn, and my grandpa is always late to class. Headmaster Mayella has been making sneaky looks at Paul, too… Professor Volkner as well, but I don't think anyone but me really notices Professor Volkner."

Ash grinned that naïve smile of his, shaking his head.

"I think you've had too much alone time, Gary. You're probably just overthinking things again. Good old Oak has to deal with those stairs every day, Volkner and Paul have always been weird like that, and Dawn might be on her…time of month," he whispered the last bit to Gary, "My mum said that they can really hurt."

Gary whacked Ash with his own bread roll. "I know that, dimwit, I have a sister! Anyways…there's definitely something weird going on around here, and I'm going to figure out what."

Ash didn't really pay him much mind, finishing the last of his breakfast before declaring himself full. Gary supposed he was much better off talking with Misty than Ash about something like this; she would understand him, and the two just both happened to be very superstitious, a bad combination.

* * *

So it was that Gary found himself outside one the many yellow cottages meant for the House of Raikou students. Sweat beaded up on the back of his neck as he felt the intense stares of passing Raikou House members as they passed, each one curious as to whay a Entei House member was doing out of their House Zone. Gary merely stared at the bright and falsely cheery off-yellow paint that adorned the Raikou House cottage, the door a strong teal. It just screamed gaudy. He raised his arm to knock, but the door flew open. Misty scowled at him, a towel on over her shoulder and goggles slung around her neck.

"What do you want, Gary?"

"Ah, just the girl I was searching for! I wanted to talk to you."

"About what?"

"…Things."

"Things?"

"Yes, things," he ran a hand through his hair, "It's hard to explain, but I feel like something suspicious is going on here."

She mutely regarded him, "Something going on in the school?"

He stared up at the sky, humming. Then he looked down at her, shaking his head.

"Nah, I think it's more people rather than the school that are being suspicious."

"Such as…?"

"Dawn, Paul, and Drew."

The red head nodded, agreeing with him. "I've noticed too, but it's not like we can ask them anything. We're not at that level of friendship. I've been having weird dreams too, if that counts towards everyone acting weird."

Gary bristled with aggravation, but slowly released it with a barely controlled sigh.

"Yeah. Whatever."

With that, the brunette walked off. Misty found herself annoyed, but headed off to the nearby school swimming pool regardless of a dreadful feeling settling within her stomach.

* * *

Volkner, a villain in misunderstood mannerisms, was looking through his ancient scrolls of spells when Gary Oak entered. The intimidating professor didn't bother sparing him a glance, reading spectacles resting upon the bridge of his nose, immersed in his research. Volkner waited for Gary to say something, but the teen merely stood there awkwardly. Silent. After several minutes of terse silence, Volkner set his scrolls down delicately.

"What do you want, Oak?"

"I, uh…I just wanted to ask you something."

"Oh?" No one ever asked Volkner about anything. He was more of an ignored character.

"Y…Yeah. I had wanted to ask you about Drew, Dawn, and Paul."

Now the blond man was surprised.

"Would not a different professor, such as your grandfather, be better qualified?"

Gary shuffled his feet, a frown tugging at his features.

"Yeah, well, I just don't want to talk to gramps."

Volkner sighed. "What do you want to ask me about your classmates? It's not like I know them that well."

"Have you observed them behaving…oddly?"

Volkner hummed, before nodding slowly. Gary smiled.

"Yes, I suppose so. They seem to be rather spaced out in my classes as of late. There's not really anything else I have observed, though-…oh," Volkner suddenly gasped.

Gary fretted, "Oh…?"

"I have noticed an atmosphere surrounding Paul, Dawn, and Drew. Everyone, as you learned being a little wizard boy, has their own aura. But…since the beginning of the school year, Drew has had an incredible blessing placed upon him in the form of a green glow. Paul acquired a blessing about a week ago or so, in the form of a red glow; it's faint, but slowly growing in color. Dawn had a blessing placed upon her, as well. Hers was the weakest, a dull blue, barely taking shape. The last class I had her, it suddenly turned black."

Gary gulped. He didn't know much about blessing and auras and the like, but what happened to his three friends definitely sounded suspicious. He also worried for Dawn.

"When was the last time that you had a class with Dawn?"

"Around…two weeks ago, give or take. I don't particularly keep track of time. She tends to fall asleep just outside my classroom, so I let her rest in my office, and give her class notes afterwards," Volkner looked up suddenly, remembering something, "Come to think of it, I heard rumors of Dawn being rushed to the infirmary this morning or yesterday morning."

Gary rushed off without another word.

* * *

At the infirmary, Gary joined the small crowd of people around Dawn. Nearby, his grandfather talked with the nurse, and two students and the headmaster were gathered around Dawn. Drew and Paul were very concerned over Dawn, fretting, but Headmaster Mayella seemed to be in a rage. She glared at the catatonic Dawn, shaking with anger. Gary felt frightened. As he lingered in the door way, Red shuffled in, an expression of fear upon his face. Mayella looked up, directing her rath upon the poor boy; she marched over to him, dragging him outside. Gary could faintly hear her yelling at Red.

"You were supposed to _protect_ her! Useless! You're useless!"

 _Protect her from what?,?_ Gary thought. The conversation faded into a whisper. The brunette slowly walked over to where Dawn lay, feeling entirely out of place in this room. As Volkner had noted, a dark air seemed to rest over the girl as she lay in her coma. Drew and Paul watched her solemnly. Gary merely stood next to them, a silence settling over the room, suffocating them. Dawn stirred, and the boys twitched, anticipating her awakening. She did not wake, and the boys fell back into depression. Meanwhile, in the dreaming world, Dawn was still in the midst of conversation with Darkrai.

* * *

Dawn and Darkrai were seated at a primly dressed table, the lace white, and the tea set silver, one looking at the other. Darkrai leisurely sipped a cup of Earl Grey while Dawn poked a fork at a petit fours, frowning.

"Was there a point to bringing out this tea set?"

"Tea is lovely, is it not? Makes for pleasant conversation."

Dawn sulked, "You haven't even told me why you're here yet."

"Ah, yes," he grinned, "Allow me to savor my tea first, and I shall tell you why I have payed you a visit."

The darkness seemed to stretch and swirled around them while Darkrai took his sweet time savoring his tea. It seemed like an eternity before he spoke again. Setting his tea cup down daintily, he looked up at her, a smirk playing upon his lips.

"I want you to be my host, Dawn."

"…your host?"

"Yes, my host. I've been watching you ever since Suicuine and Mew recruited you, and I must say that you are quite interesting. I want to cause some mischief, and you're the perfect candidate, especially with your special abilities."

"S-special abilities? I'm just an average wizard, I-," he hushed her.

"Don't belittle yourself, Dawn. You're more special than you realize," he grinned, "and I want you all for myself."

* * *

When Dawn finally awoke, this time in the late afternoon, the boys gave her a warm welcome. They were joyous to have their friend back with them, but the conversation had died as quickly as it had begun at the smirking red that momentarily flashed through Dawn's eyes. Darkrai had come out to play.

* * *

 **What did you all think? Please please please leave me a review; I really enjoy writing this, and I truly want to know if you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it for you to read.**


	7. Fall: It's still boring October

**(A/N): Long time no update, sorry. School can be time consuming. Dear Amethyst AS, you're so nice! Ah, you made my day. Anywho, things to look out for in this chapter: the villains begin their plan, Drew gets in trouble, and Mewtwo is briefly mentioned. Another thing is that when the pokemon is speaking with their host out of dreams, their conversation is in italics, with only the pokemon's part of the conversation bolded. Okay, on to the chapter!**

 _ **STANDARD DISCLAIMERS APPLY.**_

* * *

Stars twinkled in the night sky, the moon a deep rouge, not a single cloud to obstruct the view. Everyone remained sound asleep, and it had been several days since Dawn had awoken, but no one was quick to being her friend after she woke. Of all students that could be up this late, the goody-two-shoes Drew Hayden was up way beyond curfew, simply enjoying the silence of the night. He observed how the sky was simply not black, but really a mixture of deep blues, dark violets, and sparkling white lights. He simply loved to watch the stars, despite the repercussions of sleep deprivation it brought the next day.

A small, fairy-like voice sounded off in his head.

 _ **You should get to sleep soon, Drew. We have important things to do tomorrow.**_

The green haired adolescent huffed. Celebi could never let him relax without nagging him every five minutes.

 _Just give me another half hour. It's not every day you get a clear view of the stars like today. Besides, blood moons don't happen every day either! I could have brought my telescope too, if you hadn't broken it a week ago. So shut up. I deserve this._

 _ **Brat.**_

Drew could feel Celebi sassily reply as a sharp pain jolted through his head. He hated when Celebi did that, the little onion fairy could be so unreasonable sometimes. Glaring and shifting his position on the roof of the pavilion, he forced Celebi to quiet.

"Finally. Peace and quiet."

Taking a few pictures, Drew admired everything for more than just half an hour. Just as he could feel himself slipping into a content slumber, a faint rustling from nearby jolted him awake, causing him to slip off the pavilion roof.

"W-whoa!" With the aid of Celebi's power, Drew was able to catch himself with tiny wings just feet off the ground. A man gasped from nearby, and temporarily blinded Drew with the flash of a hastily taken picture. Before Drew could catch his bearings, the man ran off, panting as if simple running was a laborious task. Drew felt dread dripping down his back, worried.

 _ **Who was that man, Drew?**_

 _I-I don't know! How am I supposed to know? I couldn't see their face._

Celebi gave Drew a migraine in its panic.

 _ **We've been exposed!**_

 _Y-you don't know that, Celebi. What just happened could be explained by magic you know…_

Nonetheless, he shared Celebi's worry. Drew hurried back to his house section, and slipped into his shared bedroom, before anything else could happen, arguing with Celebi the entire way.

* * *

"DREW HAYDEN TO HEADMASTER MAYELLA'S OFFICE!"

Everyone in the dining hall was surprised to hear such an announcement in the middle of potions class; why would Drew, the local rule stickler, be called down to the Headmaster's office? More importantly, everyone was even more surprised that their school had an actual PA system. The fellow peers of Drew's potion class watched him do the slow walk of shame towards the door, all wondering what he had done to be called down to the office. Celebi was ranting the entire way, the poor little onion fairy having a panic attack.

 _Shut up already! You're giving me a migraine, Celebi._

 _ **Well, you deserve it! You got us both in trouble! You should have been more careful, you shouldn't have been out star gazing-**_

With a sigh, Drew ignored the rest of Celebi's words as he entered the headmaster's office. To his surprise, though, Mayella wasn't anywhere to be seen. The only person in the office was Professor Stein. He looked incredibly uncomfortable.

* * *

Dawn sat on the front lawn of the school, admiring the leaves that tumbled in the wind. Headmaster Mayella seemed to be cross with her, but she didn't know why. Sighing, Dawn returned to the assignment resting on her lap. Professor Oak decided to take his class outside today to see if any of the students could spot any creatures wondering about. So far, it was easy going. She saw several pixies, a few flower sprites hopping along the breeze, and teeny men taking joy rides on the falling leaves of the front lawn trees. But just sitting and watching, no matter how nice it was out, gets boring quickly. Everyone seemed to be avoiding Dawn too.

 _This is so boring…_

 _ **Really? I thought it was rather peaceful. Relaxing too.**_

Dawn jumped a little, startled by the second voice inside her head.

 _D-Darkrai? Is that you?_

A silky smooth voice chuckled inside her mind.

 _ **Who else would it be? You're my host, Dawn. Don't forget that.**_

 _Yeah, sorry, it's just…_

 _ **You thought I appeared in dreams only?**_

 _Yeah…_

 _ **Well, that's not the case, obviously. Pokémon tend to communicate like this with their host. Just ask the Celebi boy.**_

 _Celebi boy…?_

 _ **Yes, the host of Celebi.**_

 _Who's that?_

A sigh.

 _ **When were they ever planning on telling you all this? You are one of several hosts chosen to protect something called the Philosopher's Stone. I wasn't supposed to help, but I decided to try my hand at it. It gets boring sitting around with Arceus and the other losers all day. I'm not a bad guy, you know. Anyways…I, and several other legendries are taking hosts to help Mew and Mewtwo while they wait for the transfer of the stone to Girantina to be completed. Some nosy professor at your school, as well as some outside pests, want a nab at the stone. They've heard of its power.**_

 _W-whoa…_

 _ **Indeed. As I was saying, you're not the only host. Amongst those chosen to protect the stone, there was Suicuine, Raikou, Celebi, Entei, Xerneas, Mew, and Mewtwo. Mew and Mewtwo were sent years before us, and thus have their own human form. But we chose hosts, having only been dispatched recently.**_

 _You're kind of rambling, Darkrai._

 _ **Right! So, you were my host (I may or may not have stolen you from Suicuine), some drab looking boy named Paul is the host of Entei, and that wonderful green haired adolescent named Drew is the host for Celebi. Oh, that boy Drew was such a perfect candidate! Oh, you should get back to work dear, you're being missed.**_

Dawn looked up from her notebook, startled by what he said. She frantically looked around to see Professor Oak giving her a disapproving frown.

"Lost in thought there, Dawn?"

"Ah, um, yeah…s-sorry…"  
He sighed.

"Its fine, but keep in mind your assignment is due at the end of the block. You have ten minutes until the bell."

Dawn rushed to finish her assignment as the old man walked off. She hoped she'd be able to talk to Drew and Paul about what Darkrai told her soon before she forgot about it.

* * *

Walking down the corridor towards the dining hall, running her hand lazily along the wall, Dawn stared into space. It was barely noticeable, but there was a soft glow to her eyes as she spoke with Darkrai.

 _Do you know if Xerneas and Raikou already chose their hosts?_

 _ **Xerneas has been with his host almost as long as Celebi has. Raikou is struggling between two candidates for his host. Suicuine is also competing with him for one of those hosts.**_

 _I see. Do you know the name of Xerneas's host, then?_

 _ **Hmm…I believe it was a color. Beautiful boy as well, that one.**_

 _Darkrai, do you…do you bat for the other team?_

He laughed that rich, raspy laugh of his.

 _ **I only appreciate beauty in all its forms dear.**_

Entering the dining hall, Dawn sat in between Red and Green. She was glad that they had started talking to her again. She contently piled steaming poffins and pecha jam onto her plate, smiling. She looked forward to asking Darkrai more things.

 _Can we talk more in my dreams?_

 _ **Of course. I'll be waiting.**_

She could feel his voice fade as she bit into a delightfully sweet pink poffin. Green scolded her.

"You can't eat nothing but sweets all the time, you'll rot your teeth!"

She stuck her tongue out at him.

"You're not the boss of me!"  
"But he's right, Dawn."

Red removed the poffins one by one off of her plate and snuck them to his Pikachu.

"Eat some dinner now."  
Dawn puffed out her cheeks in an annoyed pout as she grumpily downed a bowl of chowder. Red and Green were like a second set of mothers to her. She couldn't tell which man was more motherly either.

"You guys suck."

Red just smiled while Green shook his head at her, scolding at her for slouching and holding her spoon wrong. All's well that ends well in a day.

* * *

In a gloomy, dust choked room, working in nothing but the dead of night, three professors conspired together in a small circle. The time was close at hand to start their plan.

"Are the preparations all ready, Alpha?" They all referred to each other by codes to not reveal their identities. The shortest member of the group grinned, all three of them veiled in matching cloaks.

"Yes. I've confirmed which students are the ones taking up hosts. I'm sure that I can at least manipulate two of them into joining our side…" The other two were delighted to hear this news.

"When do we try for the stone?"  
Alpha tutted at her.

"We cannot vie for it straight away, my dear Beta. The previous three attempts failed, and this is the last stone remaining. We must be more careful. After we acquire one of the hosts is when we can try for the stone."

Beta skulked while Alpha observed Omega.

"Have you anything to add, Volkner?"

The quiet man shook his head.

"I have no information other than this: our headmaster is not human whatsoever, and I know exactly who all of the hosts and what Pokémon they host are in this school are."

Alpha and Beta were very pleased indeed.

"We initiate this plan in one week's time."

* * *

 **So, did you enjoy? I'm so excited for future chapters! I have awesome things planned out for this story, though it kind of is a bit slow in the 'adventurous' part, sorry... Please leave me a review to let me know how I'm doing! Until next time!**


	8. Fall: Good morning, November!

**(A/N): Hope you all have been doing well! This chapter has vital info on the stones, I suppose, and we get to see more rolling story here. I've realized that so far Red, Drew, and Darkrai have become really important characters... What do you think? Also, thank you to those who continue to review and read my story! But please, do leave me a review, I really want to know how my story is progressing and if _all_ my readers are enjoying it. Also, try to leave out spoilers in your review, thanks...**

 _ **STANDARD DISCLAIMERS APPLY.**_

* * *

The familiar dreamscape welcomed Dawn. Darkrai was already seated at their usual tea table amongst the wispy shadows of Dawn's subconscious, sipping Darjeeling and wearing a different suit than when they had last met. Dawn gracefully made her way over, daintily taking her seat, the white dress she wore draping over its side. Darkrai took his time finishing his cup of tea before acknowledging her.

"The tea in your dreamscape is rather bland. You should head out more."

She frowned at the conversation starter.

"I can't help it that I don't like tea much. Besides, we were supposed to be talking about something else in this dream."

Darkrai chuckled, spreading jam on his scone elegantly.

"Yes, I haven't forgotten. You wanted to ask me more about the hosts and such, I believe."

Dawn nodded, taking a small tart for herself from the table. Darkrai leaned back as he sipped another cup of tea.

"Ask away, my dear."

"Well…I wanted to ask about what this is all about. I know you mentioned a philosopher's stone, but I don't know anything about it. Why is it so important?"

Darkrai smiled wryly, "When Arceus created the world, there was a philosopher's stone created for every known major region. Just a side effect, I suppose, of creating new worlds. The first philosopher's stone was found many a millennium ago, and that first individual who found it was a Pokémon. That Pokémon found that this stone could let him do anything he desired, and thus, he wished that he could explore the world and see things in new ways. That Pokémon became the first human.

From there, more humans came about. Now we come into the medieval era, where pokeball technology and the idea of tournaments and contests with befriended Pokémon came about. One rich king found the second philosopher's stone. From this, he birthed magic. But as he grew old, he abused this power. Another found the third stone, and used it stop this king. Those two stones were destroyed in the process.

Arceus learned of these happenings before long, and decided that the stones he accidentally created were too dangerous to remain in the world of Pokémon. Thus he sent mew down to initiate complicated ceremonies to transfer these stones to the realm in which Girantina resides, where they will then become powerless. Mew found the first stone easily, but it takes many years for such a ceremony to take place, for it takes a substantial amount of power to send something with limitless possibility to a second dimension. So, this first stone was sent across the dimensions without incident.

Mew found that the second and third stones destroyed each other, so Mew did not worry for them. But at that same time, Kanto was in the midst of a war from which Pokémon was used as devastating weapons. Depressed by what they saw, Mew took to hiding in the caves of Kanto for many years. When Mew emerged, the war was gone but Team Rocket was taking over. Mew then found the fifth stone in their possession. They had captured Mew and created Mewtwo with the aid of advanced technologies and the fifth stone.

When two legendary trainers took down Team Rocket, Mew managed to free itself. It saved Mewtwo, and convinced it to aid it on its quest to locate the final stone. The two of them destroyed the fifth stone, which put them in Arceus's disfavor. Their search sent them to Hoenn, then to Kalos, and then all the way back to Sinnoh, where they found the final stone deep beneath Heart Home Magic Academy.

They've been trying in the process of transferring the final stone since the creation of the first pokedex by Professor Oak. But guardians have been needed as of late because some old enemies have begun to work again to try and take the final stone. They had tried for the last three stone as well. They all believe that there are only five stones."

Dawn gaped, trying to intake all this info all at once. She did not catch that the fourth stone was not mentioned much.

"Wow…I…I can't believe that I've been chosen to help in something so big and important…"

Darkrai grinned, nodding.

"You have a lot of potential, Dawn. So, any other questions?"

"Ah, yeah, actually. Who is Xerneas's host? If you remembered, that is."

"Hm…oh! The color was red. Xerneas's host is Red."

"…"

"What?"  
"Isn't Red from Kanto, though? Xerneas is a Kalos legendary…."

Darkrai laughed at her.

"We choose our hosts based upon their hearts and personal virtues, Dawn. We don't pick based upon what region we originate from."

"Oh."

Darkrai smiled at her and they continued their small tea party together until Dawn woke in the morning.

* * *

Drew sighed miserably as he mopped and scrubbed the floors of the dining hall until it sparkled. Headmaster Mayella was seriously angry with him, and had Professor Stein issue the punishment. Drew had never met Professor Stein before, but he could assume the purple haired albino to be Mewtwo because of how close the man was to Mayella. Drew honestly did not see what the point of his punishment was if whoever it was that took his picture could be told that Drew was simply performing magic. But nope.

Mayella felt that Drew, the goody-two-shoes of the entire student population, was too fool hardy and needed this punishment. The green haired teen huffed in relief when the buzzer went off, signaling that his punishment was over. He put away the soapy bucket and cleaning supplies, then tiredly headed out to the dorm cottages. Whatever they were called. Why couldn't the school just do things regularly?

Drew entered his secluded dorm community, House of Celebi, wary of those around him. He felt as though the man from that night was following him, but he nothing to base this off of. Just as he was about to reach his cottage, Drew was startled by Professor Oak suddenly tapping his shoulder. The old man chuckled light heartedly.

"Did I startle you, Drew? I'm sorry."

Drew shook his head, sheepish.

"No, it's fine. Did you need something, Professor Oak?"

"Yes, actually. I had wanted to speak to you about something important."

"Is it an assignment…?"  
"Of sorts. But I'm sure an honor student like you wouldn't mind, right?"

Drew found himself whisked away again, Celebi twittering in his mind reminders of much homework he had. It was going to be a long night tonight.

* * *

Dawn could not remember the last time she had talked to Paul. It felt like years when they met again in the halls. Dawn supposed they stopped talking after Darkrai had begun to give her nightmares.

"Paul."

He regarded with a mix of a troubled but also composed expression.

"Dawn."

Silence lingered between them, passing students and creatures ignoring them.

"…so, how are you?" Dawn had broken the silence first.

"Fine, I guess."

"…cool…"

Silence again. Then:

"I should probably get going now, Troublesome, but I guess I'll see you around."

The slip of the small nickname caused her to latch onto his arm.

"W-wait! Let's…hang out for a bit."

Entei protested that Darkrai was a meanie to be distrusted, but deep down, Paul's hidden softness made him agree. He had no friends other than Ash and Gary, and he only occasionally talked with Drew. He admittedly missed Dawn's friendship, despite how new their relation with one another still is.

"Sure."

The two sat at their spot in the pavilion and caught up with each other. Dawn told Paul of how kind and polite Darkrai is, despite how he was scary at first because he only ever appeared in nightmares the first nights that she met him. Paul listened, despite Entei not believing in Dawn one bit. They chatted and caught with one another, and could feel their friendship naturally renew itself. They bickered over small things too, but it was playful banter of two individuals that went well together enjoying the sunset with one another. Omega watched them the entire time, his eyes set on Darkrai, but Beta had her eyes set eastward on Misty Waterflower entering her cottage after a relaxing day at the gym. Soon the warnings had to begin. Alpha had his eyes set on another entirely.

* * *

"Beta, are you listening to me? We cannot have you blowing the covers that we've artfully constructed these past lifetimes simply because you feel the need to tease the opposing side!"

Beta was roused from her light dosing, and looked up at Alpha with a disgruntled expression. Her purple hair fell around her in curtains.

"Yes, yes, I hear you. You take too many precautions. Yet not enough all at once. You inducted that Omega too easily. Also, I, Agatha, and countless others have barely made it to the present day these last hundred years. The least you could do is let an old women rest."

Alpha scoffed at her.

"You don't look a day over twenty five."

"Time treats women better than it does men. Ah, here comes the newbie. What news have you, Volkner?"

The stoic man frowned at how they still hadn't accepted them into their group yet. Things would not go as smoothly as he had hoped.

"I have ascertained the location of a stone fragment."

Alpha looked up from his mug of coffee quickly, "Fragment?"

"Yes. A fragment. It seems that this ceremony was so long and drawn out because this stone was crushed into many different pieces. This fragment is believed to be the last one, but I do believe that this is simply the other side trying to mislead us. I have located two. I am still skeptical as to whether or not it is actually a fragment or not."

Alpha shook his head, sighing.

"Fragment or not, I need at least some form of a stone. Do you know how important this is, Volkner? Do you?"

"I only have slim knowledge of its importance, sir alpha."

"Hmph. With its mere _dust_ , one could rule nations! One could have anything he desires-but the aspect of everlasting life and power is most important. These stones have been scattered over the years, and obtaining new ones or even bits of rubble from them is the upmost importance to keeping ourselves alive. Beta and I are relics of an ancient world, wonders that brought miracles that no one even appreciates anymore!"

"Alpha, your blood pressure…"

"Hush, Beta! These stones are important, and I want them, and I want them now! You, Volkner, are our most important tool. Understand?"

"…yes, sir alpha."

Volkner donned his hood, bowed, and departed. Alpha and Beta were simply detestable. Volkner felt sorry for their students.

* * *

Red felt as though someone was watching him for the sixth time that week. Everywhere he turned, he swore that someone was eyeing him from some corner or other. Pika nuzzled and pushed at Red's cheek in worry, but he simply patted him on the head.  
"I'm fine, Pika. Don't worry."

Another unpleasant voice sounded in his head. The proud and noble Xerneas; but the majestic legendary was only proud in voice and obnoxious stature. The real Xerneas was only a coward that took over control, despite how it was Red's own body. Xerneas boasted of how she could take out any adversary in seconds, but Red quickly drowned her out by concentrating on the college lecture he was attending. Discovering that he could be a part of something as helping Arceus and Mew was exciting at first, but Red quickly found Xerneas to be annoying. At least he had classes to distract him.

"Psst…Red!"

Blank red eyes met worried green ones.

"The professor is giving you the stink eye…"

Glancing down, Red saw that the professor was indeed angry with him. It must be because he brought Pika along to class again. Without breaking eye contact or uttering a single word, Red slowly stuffed Pika neatly into his jacket to hide him. The professor looked angrier and let out a strangled sound of frustration before continuing the lecture.

"You need to stop bringing your Pikachu to class, Red…"

The grown ass man pouted.

"But Green, you know he gets lonely all by himself in the dorm cottage."

"…" Green sighed. "Yeah, well, just hide him better. I don't want you getting me in trouble too."

"Sure."

The lecture dragged on until lunch, where Red got to join Green and Dawn at the House of Suicuine table. He adored his friends, they were like a small family to him.

"Hi Red! Hi Pika!" Dawn giggled while Green scolded her for eating nothing but sweets again, though Dawn paid him no mind because she was too busy feeding Pika berries. Red smiled with warm affection at the two of them, and he took his place between the both of them, gently replacing Dawn's plate of sweets with a plate of sandwiches. He chuckled as Dawn pouted and protested, while Green smirked in triumph; Red's happiness was momentarily lost when he made eye contact with an old teacher across the hall.

It was brief, but for that one moment, it was as though it was just the two of them alone in a dark, dust chocked room up in the classroom of a tower right at the top of the stairs. An old man who he had once thought was kind, who gave Red his love for adventure, once a role model; the same teacher who also happened to involve him in the entire stone incidents since the moment he had Red and Green enter the academy together. The teacher smiled at him, and it was that one teacher that only ever allowed them to refer to each other by nickname: Alpha. Red felt himself pale, drown into a static silent sea of panic as Alpha and him exchanged stares, the worried words of students lost on him. The trio had begun their fear tactics and moves.

Red held the first fragment, and they have singled him out first.

* * *

 **I really do love writing for this story! Please leave me a review of your thoughts and feedback. Have a nice day/evening wherever you are!**


	9. Announcement!

p class="MsoNormal"Hello my readers! Is this an update after so long? Sadly no, it is not. But I do have some good news for you! I am going to rewrite this story and vamp it into an adventurous and magical tale that I will certainly be proud of. I hope you will like the rewritten version; there are a few changes in it and some addition and subtraction of occurrences from the original, but the overall plot and cast of major characters will remain the same. The working title for the new story is Heart Home Magic Academy: The Revival! and you can find information for it under my profile. Thanks for reading!/p 


	10. Announcement, 2!

The rewrite is here and it is called "A World Written in Shadow Gray"! I hope that you all will enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it! My passion for writing the story of Heart Home Magic Academy has been reignited with this rewriting. I'm treating it as a new story, seperate from this one, but based off of this one. I hope you don't mind that. It's been such a long time, but now, it is here. I wish that it meets anyone who was expecting a rewrite's expectations. Thank you, lovely readers! (PS: Theres an important reason for the rewrite to have an alternate title, hehehe.)


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